28.9.06

knitta

jan posted on the knitta group yesterday and i had to repost. founded by a renegade group of crafters who know their way around a pair of knitting needles, knitta is a "tag crew of knitters, bombing the inner city with vibrant, stitched works of art, wrapped around everything from beer bottles on easy nights to public monuments and utility poles on more ambitious outings." click here to check out their projects- i love the idea of contributing something so homey and hand-made to an urban environment. [via poppytalk]

22 Comments:

omg! I walked into that store with the purple door handle and I've been wanting to remember what the name of it is. It sells the most original clothes and even Egg Press cards. It's going to drive me nuts!

wow ! This is brilliant and so subversive. It is completely counter-intuitive to think that knitting can be used to "tag" (takes a lot longer than spray painting... ), and that's the whole point. I guess.I'm floored.

they have a wonderful piece up right now at the socrates sculpture park that i saw last week...and i also happened across one of their "tags" in front of my hotel when i was in seattle recently (the ace hotel). really interesting, fun stuff!

I personally think this is ridiculous. I'm pretty sure I understand the idea behind it in terms of accessible, subversive and public art... but these installations, (if you will) make absolutely no discernable statement. And unlike paint on a building or sculpture in a park- they will not last. I've seen some in Seattle that are wrapped around lightpoles and fastened with zipties- I wish they'd at least be comprehensive enough to use good materials. Bear in mind that I'm an artist and I do support expression be it personal or public but I really can't seem to understand what point they're trying to make by decorating the feet of post office boxes, door handles and utility poles with cheap, unatractive and environmentally unsound materials. To me it just seems like one more attempt to popularize knitting as the hip thing to do.Just my $.02.

I think these are great as well. I also live in Seattle and find them to brighten the street and make people stop and investigate and then smile when they realize what it is. If you don't want to call it "art" then fine but let's not tear them apart for doing something creative and fun that isn't hurting anyone or anything.

I think "ridiculous" is a ridiculous word to use in describing this project. You may not like it or appreciate it's artistic value (or lack thereof in your opinion) but to get all riled up about a public art installation (even if you are an "artist") with yarn is well ridiculous. It's just yarn, dude. Chill.

Just because you're an "artist" it doesn't mean you know better than anyone else, sorry, it doesn't.

Carl,With all due respect- I never said I was better than anyone else. In stating that I'm an artist, I was trying to give some relativity to my perspective... meaning I'm not some Jane Shmoe off the street without a basic understanding of art and artistic principles. I think you misunderstood my opinion for a statement of superiority. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.As for it being harmless decorative artwork, I'd argue that fixing arcylic yarn with plastic zipties to public and private property doesn't exactly exemplify an approach to installation art that is environmentally sound.

"meaning I'm not some Jane Shmoe off the street without a basic understanding of art and artistic principles"

i think the average person on the street has a basic understanding of what they like and don't like. and if someone likes this i think that it means it has enough "purpose" or "message" for them. this clearly doesn't have enough for you, but don't assume that someone on the street (who may or may not have a background in art) doesn't know enough about art to have a valid opinion or understand artwork.

I think maybe we're missing the point. What one "anonymous" said, was that she didn't like it. She called it "ridiculous" but it pretty much boils down to her just not liking Knitta, please's work. I personally think it's fun and whimsical. Sort of a dress up day for inanimate objects. But I think jumping on someone for speaking their mind isn't the point. We're all here to learn about and talk about art, not each other. If you only want to hear praise for the artists posted about- don't post the negative comments.

i disagree. i don't think that the first anon only said "i don't like it". they went into some detail about how there was no message and that it was a number of things people disagree with. i love that people go talking about public art for a bit- i have no problem with negative comments (i always post them unless they devolve into cursing), but i do have a problem with people assuming the average "jane schmoe" doesn't know anything about art. their was an elitist tone to the post that i think a number of us had a problem with. however, that anon was of course always welcome to clarify their point and continue with the debate.

You know, sometimes when more critical comments are made about design or art, another poster will assume the first has no knowledge of art and therefore no right to criticize. This whole "need to qualify my comments with my intimate knowledge of the artist" thing has gone both ways in other postings. Perhaps Anon was just being overly defensive? The tags are totally cute, but no one seemed to acknowledge the point of the Anon poster--these little things are really no more of an artistic statement than a simple grafitti tag and not really environmentally helpful. Yet, adorable.

I have seen these all over and have actually spoken with the folks who made them and my overall impression is that this is a cynical media ploy. They describe what they do as a "Tag" but suffer no consequences for their actions. I am not a seasoned crafter but I do know that it does not take a ton of skill to create these things. Have you seen one two months after it was installed? NASTY!!!! Plus the name is horrible. Why play on such an ugly, racist term?

I don't think anyone is particularly upset. I think it's just very interesting to see that some people, (and I'm with them on this) are more concerned for the longevity of pieces like this. It's not that the idea isn't good but the execution might be flawed if a their intent is anything other than to amuse. For some people who create, it's about the lifecylce of the piece and so its ability to biodegrade is or isn't the point. The dirt that acummulates does or doesn't add to the piece.

And for it just being string... it wouldn't bother anyone when bits and pieces of this acryllic (aka plastic) material breaks off, is swept down the street by rain water and eventually entered our streams and rivers? When you create in the open-air, there are additional considerations to be made.